How to Build a More Sustainable and Circular Feedstock

Author: Amy Anderson | Editor: Jae Allen, Herica De Casas (fabricfeed)

Whether you are developing a sustainable feedstock or looking to make more informed choices as an apparel consumer, we’ve outlined key factors below to help you consider better end-of-life solutions.

Designing fabric inputs with outputs in mind is a critical shift needed in the industry. When building more sustainable apparel & textiles, we must consider how our inputs translate into outputs for more circular, environmental solutions. This is especially important with the incoming shift toward extended producer responsibility, such as California’s SB-707 legislation, which brands and manufacturers need to start planning for. Avoiding addressing these issues could result in major consequences (sometimes with fines as large as $50,000 per day!). A good starting point for designing with outputs in mind is to consider your design features, fabric and fiber types, and applications.

Fabric and Fiber Types

Considering the sustainability inputs of a fabric or feedstock before the manufacturing process is also a critical factor. Identifying your preferred fabric or feedstock should account for the environmental inputs required to grow, produce, process, and refine the material, as well as the reuse pathways or options at its end-of-life. Additionally, blending fiber types with more than two components often leads to complexities in matching outbound use. Similarly, garments composed of multiple sections with varied textiles compromises reusability and recyclability. For example, pants made with cotton legs but polyester pocket linings would require the removal of those pockets and lining to be recycled. Digital fiber tags are a powerful tool for supporting garment reusability, providing transparency in fiber type and traceability through its lifecycle.

Below is a breakdown of fabric and fiber type suggestions, along with their limitations to recycling and downcycling:

• Embrace regenerative fabrics: Wool, hemp, linen, and sustainably grown cotton are best for reusability and sustainability.
• Limit blends: Identifying complex multiple fiber types makes it hard to sort it properly and limits outbound use (fiber to fiber recycling is currently limited to 100% cotton, 100% wool, and ~100% polyester).
• Avoid oil-based garments: Avoiding virgin oil sourcing is best for the environment. If polyester is your desired fabric choice, consider using recycled polyester–100% polyester fabric has fiber to fiber recycling capacity.
• Limit spandex/elastane (percentage 1%-5%): Spandex and elastane have limited re-spinning and downcycling options for textiles.?
• Avoid faux leather: Faux leather made of polyurethane/PU tends to crack & disintegrate into micro poly dust that is non-recyclable and limits re-use. Avoid synthetic leathers and opt for natural and bio-based materials like cactus, mushroom, cork, or upcycled leather.
• Minimize varied fabric layering: Lined garments with multiple fabrics layered or sewn together within one garment would require costly separation for fiber to fiber recycling. Consider using mono-stream fiber types for your garment.
• Check out pre-existing fabric types or garments that have already been created–utilize deadstock, overstock, or upcycling to bring new life or iterations to materials that are existent in excess.

Design Features

When choosing applications and details for your desired garment, avoid trims that require glues or adhesives, varied types of plastic, or large amounts of metal that may limit reusability. Below are examples of design features with limitations in the recycling and downcycling landscape:

• No sequins or rhinestones
• Faux fur or features with hardened or variable backing
• Reflective material layering or features
• Limit hardware & be mindful of hardware size –for example, large metal rings, overall buckles, sizeable zippers or metal laden garments that will require removal

Applicants & Dyes

Dyes not only contribute to harmful runoff and exposure in factories and during user wear, but they can also limit reuse options, such as recyclability. Currently, these are some limitations that recyclers are more likely to refuse:

• Highly reactive dyes, vat dyes, and complex dye mixtures are to be avoided.
• Limit surface applicants and silk screening. The more sizable the applicant, the less recoverable the garment can be. Garments with applicants larger than 2 sq inches can limit recyclability.?
• Raincoat and waterproof materials are widely problematic and not accepted by current recyclers or downcyclers. You have to get innovative with upcycling solutions for reuse options for anything of this nature.

Exclusive Bonus!

Fabricfeed held an exclusive Q&A with Amy Anderson, taking an even deeper dive into the circularity of garments. If you’d like access to the bonus, behind-the-scenes content, drop “Q&A” in the comments and we’ll DM it to you.

Thanks for reading! Resource-sharing is an integral piece to building a more sustainable textiles ecosystem. If you have more questions or curiosities about how to build a more sustainable fabric supply, please follow fabricfeed or connect with Amy Anderson on Linkedin for more details.?